Illustrated & Animated: The Collections of Burningham & Blundall (514) Wed, 28th Feb 2018, Edinburgh Lot 162

Estimate: £5000 - £7000 + Fees JOHN MICHAEL BLUNDALL (1937-2014) PUPPET OF PARKER FROM THUNDERBIRDS carved and painted wood and fabric 57cm x 15cm x 7cm Note: Aloysius Parker was created in 1965 when Gerry and commissioned the puppet character for the pioneering television seriesThunderbirds. John Blundall sculpted the original puppet for the show, referencing "typical, clichéd butlers in black-and-white English comedy films". He commented that he "made Parker look so unlike the other puppets just to be bloody-minded, because I wanted to prove that to produce really strong characters in puppets, you need to stylize them and find two or three characteristics to combine and communicate with." David Graham, who voiced the character with a heavy cockney accent, had been taken by to hear the voice of a certain wine waiter who was supposed to have been a royal butler. "I just made him a bit more villainous", said Graham. Parker became a celebrated TV "star" on both sides of the Atlantic. While the original, screen-used Parker was made from fibreglass, Blundall carved this later, non screen-used version from wood. In the serial, Parker - nicknamed "Nosey" - was butler to Creighton-Ward, a young aristocrat who was a field agent for International Rescue. Parker had a criminal past and underworld status. Lady Penelope discovered him robbing a safe belonging to an oil tycoon and enlisted his help in her espionage activities. However, his official duties included being a faithful butler and chauffeur of her pink Rolls-Royce, FAB 1.